Faverani, Pressey impress in preseason finale

The Celtics wrapped on their preseason in Boston tonight, just a couple of miles from Fenway Park and the first game of the World Series. Surprisingly, there was a decent crowd at the game, and they were treated to a mostly entertaining affair against the Nets JV team. The Celtics held off the Nets and finished their preseason with a 101-97 win.

The Green

Let’s start with Vitor, who beasted all over the Sorta Nets. He finished with 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 blocks. Somehow, he only managed 1 assist, but I feel like he opened things up for guys out there. He, like most guys, will have work to do and some muscle tone wouldn’t be a bad thing either, but Vitor’s got a nice touch around the basket, he can hit from 3, and perhaps most impressively, he doesn’t seem nervous at all to be playing in the NBA. He’s just out there ballin’… something he’s done professionally since he was 14. Stevens likes him, and his start tonight is telling. Fav’s getting minutes.

Phil Pressey struggled a little in the 4th, but he completely changed the tenor of the game when he checked in. He started by hitting Brandon Bass with a gorgeous pass on the break, which just encouraged the team to run more. Yes, he got a little caught up in the moment and turned the ball over, but that’s only because he was feeling it after getting the team to move at his pace. Some of his numbers (4 points, 4 assists) seem misleading, but his +10 makes sense. He made an impact out there, and he’s got skills, for sure. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him as Rondo’s primary backup by the All Star break, which will make the Jordan Crawford/Courtney Lee minutes distribution interesting (more on these 2 in The Grid)

Brandon Bass had a nice game. 16 points and 9 rebounds, and a block. I know we’re all gushing tonight about Vitor, but Bass just kept on doing good things.

Kelly Olynyk had some beautiful moves tonight. 9 points and 6 rebounds doesn’t do his game justice.

Gerald Wallace is quickly becoming my favorite player on this team. He’s doing a little bit of everything (14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) and he’s doing things like taking 4th quarter charges. He’s doing everything out there………. which means he’s also doing everything he can to prove to a contender that he still has it and he’s worth trading for, which makes me love the guy even more.

The Gross

The first quarter was a bit of a mess, and the Celtics spent a lot of time overreacting on defense. There was a bunch of defensive confusion out there, and that persisted throughout the game.

I’m not going to bog you down with much more than that. The gross stuff from tonight is the same gross stuff we’ve seen all preseason. That stuff will take a while to get rid of.

The Greenlights

Jordan Crawford with the sweet pass to Avery Bradley

That beautiful Pressey dime to Bass

The Grid

Jordan Crawford: 1-8 fg (0-5 3pt), 6 reb, 1 ast, 4 pts

Courtney Lee: 3-7 (2-4 3pt), 4 ast, 2 stl, 9 pts

Avery Bradley: 5-13 (0-2 fg), 4 reb, 3 ast, 16 pts

Points in the paint: 44-30 Boston

Second chance points: 23-13 Boston

That’s the preseason, folks. Next stop, Toronto in a week, and the beginning of a tough season. There was much better effort tonight and that’s a very good sign. But they struggled to beat the Nets scraps, which is a bit of a reality check.

I don’t want to piss on any parades after a win, but we’re about to embark on a very tough month or so. November’s schedule is brutal, and as much as I like a bunch of the guys on this team, they’re not quite ready to handle this kind of thing yet. I do think they’ll get better as the season goes along, but it’s about to get tough.

Wallace will be a fan favorite. Sullinger will be the all around MVP till Rondo returns. Kelly Olynyk will show he has ice in his veins.

swissflix

I am a fan of Wallace’s game already. Sully needs to let go of those 3s and work the paint. As for the Klynyk, i am very impressed by his passing. Just very clean, very smart and precise. He is a complete player, even if it won’t show up in numbers immediately. His picks are way too soft, though.

bill_nair

I could see Wallace being the teams leading scorer easily. But I do hope who ever the teams leading scorer is averages more than 15-17. Shouldn’t expect it since this offense will be terrible.

Curt Hays

John, of course you like Crash. He is a hustle player. That’s his game through and through. That’s why we are Celtics. We like hustle.

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KGino

I think we should start pressey over j craw… We’re not going to win many anyways, might as well let the kid develop and see what we got with him. He’s really the only other PG on this team besides rondo, and this would allow avery to be more comfortable at the 2. Face it, j craw will never be a part of our future anyways….

bill_nair

Vitor should start in my opinion. He’s not ready yet but with experience he could be a very good starting center. Wish we had Colt too. We’d have a pretty decent front line with those 2 banging bodies in the paint.

Curt Hays

Can I just point out that I really like B-Steve’s tie?

andy

This is when I miss KG the most… having Feverani on the court with defensive chief Garnett C’s defense would be rock solid… Also KG mentoring Sullinger and KO could build up a great set of big men for the C’s…